It was the Spring of 1968, I had been wounded in Viet Nam. A Million Dollar wound I was told. I was going home, only half of one tour in the jungles and I was heading home. Missing a few parts here and there, but alive, it would take months of recovery and therapy to resume some sort of a normal life again, but it sure beat the alternative.
I was shipped off to a veterans hospital and treated for my wounds and my mind. Yes, I was bitter and wondered why me, all the shit that goes through your mind after something like this happens to you. Even though I was in better shape than a lot of the young soldiers I saw, the thought was still one of self pity and anger.
Angry against everyone and everything, the Government was no real help, and the people we were over in Nam dying for were shit. No one understood that we didn't want to be there as much as they didn't want us to be, but to spit on us and call us baby killers when they, the Vietnamese were the ones pushing a baby carriage up to a group of soldiers and detonating bombs, killing and maiming hundreds of us was beyond their comprehension .
I stayed away from the main group of guys in the ward, not wanting to socialize. My only saving grace was a young nurse, Sally, she always went out of her way to see me. Asking how I was doing, always getting the same answer.
"Shitty!" I would growl at her.
I have to say, she took it with style and grace, always with a comeback and a large smile. I knew I shouldn't try to take it out on her, it wasn't her fault I was here, she was trying to help us guys. I had been there about a month and a half when one day Sally came over to me.
"Come on, we are taking you out of here. It's time for you to see the sun from outside and not from behind this dirty glass." She let me know with no uncertain terms I was going to go regardless if I wanted too or not. She wheeled me outside and I felt the soft breeze and the sun on my face for the first time in over 3 months. I took a deep breath and took it all in, the smell of the fresh cut grass, the flowers by the outer door, the mess hall food as it cooked, wafting through the air, like a bouquet. Too bad it didn't taste as good as it smelled.
I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, and smiled at the memories of each smell. Actually relieved to get away from the sour smell of stained bed sheets, full of piss and fecal matter. I had forgotten how good it smelled out of the ward.
Sally looked shocked as she set my brakes on the chair, "Oh My!" She exclaimed. "Your face, it's, it's not breaking! And your smiling, Someone call a Dr." she cried out. A beautiful smile crossed her face, her Blue eyes sparkled when she did. I had to laugh with her at her statement.
"You know Jim, you don't have it near as bad as most of these guys. At least you will be able to walk from here, a lot of them will never walk again." her eyes got a sad look in them as she said it.
"I know Miss Sally, I know. I should be ashamed of myself instead of wallowing in self pity. But it's so hard when you leave home before your suppose to get married, and then when she finds out how bad I was wounded, she dropped me. It just all built up too much for me I guess. I'm sure sorry I have been rough on you, and I would surely love to make it up to you someday if at all possible." I told her I earnestly.
"Well then when you get released, you call me. I will give you my number, I am always out for a good free meal." she grinned.
"It's a date Miss Sally, for sure!" I grinned back, before closing my eyes and soaking up the warmth of the sunshine. I rested awhile before Miss Sally came back and pushed me back inside.
"Thank you Miss. Sally! I really enjoyed that, it meant a lot to me."
"Oh your welcome Jim, I just couldn't bear watching you waste away in there anymore. It won't be long and your going to owe me a night out. Your doing so well with your rehab."
"Thanks, a few missing toes and tore muscles aren't going to stop me."
Actually, torn muscles was putting it lightly, since they had to rebuild half of my leg and taken almost half my right foot off. I went to the mess hall and had the shit they called food, damn, I thought to myself, I ate better on K-Rations in Nam. I couldn't wait to get out of here.
Miss Sally made her daily rounds and never failed to stop by and check on me. She wasn't a really beautiful woman, but her attitude, and bedside manner made her as beautiful as an Angel. She always had a smile for us and a joke. Her body was enough to make us all hornier. She had rather large breasts and her tight white uniform showed them well. Her legs are kind of thick and her waist was wide, not a Playboy Bunny by any means, and her face was cute, even though her mouth was too large for her face and her teeth were not perfectly straight. She was a sweetheart though, the kind of woman who would make a wonderful wife and mother some day.
The day came for my release and I found her walking the halls making her rounds.
"OK Lady, you owe me one phone number. I'm outta here!" I told her with a huge grin.
"Oh Jim, that's great, Im so happy for you. I'm going to miss you, you kept me on my toes around here." She smiled at me. She looked in her uniform pocket and took out her pen and a notepad. She wrote her phone number down and handed it to me. "Call me any night after 7 PM, that gives me time to get home and cleaned up."
"Yes Ma'am, I can do that." I let her know. "Now, do you know an honest car dealer around here?"
She laughed, "Isn't that an oxymoron? Kind of like the term Military Intelligence?"
"I guess so Miss Sally." I laughed with her.
She told me of a car dealer that had the car I wanted to look at so I hopped in a Cab and rode over. Two hours later I drove off in a new 1968 Mustang Fastback, Cream and White Interior, 4 speed with a 289 4bbl. Not at a bad price either, I paid cash for it and drove off the lot smoking the tires like a teenager in his parents car.
I went and found a decent Motel for a place to lay my head, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with the rest of my life yet and had money in my pocket so why waste time thinking about it now. I found a decent place and went in to take a hot shower, damn it was nice not having a group of guys and nurses watching me wash. It felt so good and relaxing I almost fell asleep. I went out and got some hamburgers and fries and a good thick malt. Son of a Bitch, it was fantastic! The first food I had in the free world in a long time.
I was working on getting my nerve up to call Miss Sally, still not sure if she would really go out with me or not, and since it was only 4:30 in the afternoon I had time to work on it. I lay down and turned on the TV and soon fell asleep taking a short nap. While I was sleeping I dreamt about Miss Sally, nothing erotic, just of us having a good time, only it seemed like it was years from today.
I woke up wondering how long I had slept, it had only been a couple of hours. I got up and freshened up a bit then got up my nerve and called Miss Sally.
As the phone rang I almost hung up and was fixing to when she answered it.
"Hello!"
